I’ve been teaching at the University of East London since 1999, the year I travelled back from New York and started to look for a job. I remember looking for places that prioritised new ways of analysing culture and welcomed a mixed rather than a privileged student popular. I quickly focused on UEL, drawn to the university's strong record in cultural studies research, its definitively multicultural and cross-class student body, and its East London location. Previously I'd never stayed in a job for more than a year or two. Something must have clicked because I haven't moved since.

The university awarded me a permanent contract in 2001; I validated and led the Music Production and Culture programme in 2003; I became a reader in 2009; and I was made a professor in 2013. Along the way I also became a founding member of the Centre for Cultural Studies Research, where a group of like-minded colleagues put on a yearly programme of events on the subject of culture and politics. One of my own initiatives involved CCSR staging a four-part symposia held with the Wire titled Critical Beats: Electronic Dance Music, Club Culture and the East London Connection.

I teach two modules, Contextual Studies 1: History of Music Genre and Contextual Studies 2: Music Technology & Cultural Theory. I supervise PhDs, with students so far conducting research on glam rock and class, psychedelic trance, London hip hop and sampling automation. Since being made a prof I've stepped back from programme leading and have taken on more responsibility for the University’s research strategy. As part of the shift, I am coordinator for the School's Communication, Cultural and Media Studies (Unit of Assessment 36) submission to the Research Exercise Framework, which allocates funding to UK higher education institutions. Our last submission, made for REF 2014, achieved the highest ranking in the university.

Please get in touch if you'd like to study at UEL. All PhD enquiries are welcome.